Kerry Is Pick for Secretary of State, Official Says

Source: New York Times

WASHINGTON — President Obama plans to nominate Senator John Kerry of Massachusetts as secretary of state, a senior administration official said, succeeding Hillary Rodham Clinton and putting in place the first member of his second-term national security team.

The appointment of Mr. Kerry, a Massachusetts Democrat and his party’s former presidential nominee in 2004, has been widely expected since last week, when Susan E. Rice, the ambassador to the United Nations, asked Mr. Obama to withdraw her candidacy for the post.

Ms. Rice had come under weeks of attack from Republicans in Congress over her role in the aftermath of the deadly attack on the United States mission in Benghazi, Libya. Mr. Kerry, as chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, oversaw a hearing on Benghazi on Thursday, at which the State Department came under renewed criticism for its failure to respond to requests for additional security in Libya.

The decision by Mr. Obama, expected to be announced early Friday afternoon, comes at a time when Mrs. Clinton has been recovering from a concussion suffered earlier this month. Mrs. Clinton, who has long said she would leave the post after Mr. Obama’s first term, is not expected to attend the announcement.

44. They will spend millions in vain. We will win. Don't you worry.

The Warren organization is still warm... we have a head start. And we will build on that. Don't forget that when Kennedy died, a lot of his staff moved to Kerry. We have them too now. This will not be a problem.

48. Obama had not necessarily made his choice - that is what he said when he was defending Rice

Not to mention, there were likely at least 10 people - many of whom I would not know the names of - that could have been nominated. Would you have felt the same if Obama would have chosen Rice and people would have said that it was BECAUSE she was attacked and the media framed it as caving if he did not pick her.

Looking just at their experience, ability to work with the Senate, and diplomatic skills, it is easier to make the case that Kerry is clearly better. It is incontestable for the last two. So, where was Rice said to be better - demographics ( how's that for the reverse racism and sexism) and the fact that she is said to be a friend of the President. On the latter, do you really want to argue for cronyism?

This is not intended to disparage Rice, she is a brilliant,very ambitious woman, who has moved up fast in foreign policy circles - which shows that she is competent and she can get get along with the people she needed to get along with. She is also quite young and has the chance to change her reputation as abrasive and to establish better relations with the Senate. She then could be a clear choice for some future Democratic President.

67. OH, you are spot on! n/t

81. Exactly. I understood why President Obama chose Hillary Clinton over John Kerry,

considering the contentious primary and very hurt feelings, but I am pretty sure John Kerry had always been President Obama's first choice for SoS. John will be an exceptional SoS, and I'm not the least afraid that his senate seat is in any danger of going Republican. Aside from the fact that Senator-Elect Warren still has her team warm and ready to go, fresh off her huge win, and the OFA is still there.

I'm sure President Obama is not going to allow Brownie to slither his way back into the Senate this time.

15. This is probably his "retirement" preparation job

Unless he's planning another run at the White House, I'd guess he'll retire in four years, to try to be an "elder statesman" like Big Dog or Jimmy Carter. His wife is rich enough, he doesn't need the job.

73. Again...why?

Why would he want that job? It is probably one of the hardest civilian jobs (aside from President) in the entire US government. At 70 you'd think he'd sit back and do his job as a Senator and retire after the next term.

75. Ambition? Power?

Politicians are a different breed of people. Most folks who had such a long career, and as much money as he has, would probably want to chill out and enjoy the rest of their lives. Politicians are the exception. Senators usually drop dead, rather than retire.

13. And that the Democratic Party stays asleep at the bar.

20. I have wondered the same thing.

Why does President Obama keep raiding the senate for his cabinet picks? Sure, I understand that he was a senator, and that these people are familiar to him, but doesn't he consider the possible consequences of freeing up a senate seat held by a Dem? Granted, the odds of a Republican taking Kerry's seat in Mass. are slim, but the same thing was said when Senator Kennedy passed away. Why take the risk?

104. We could have found another good candidate for the SOS job and appointed him or her.

Instead we are faced with a very iffy situation in the Senate. IMO this was a very reckless move by the President. The U.S. desperately needs enough control of the Senate to get some legislation passed.

7. So much handwringing.....

Folks need to remember that Obama is playing Chess while everyone else in Washington is playing Checkers. Might this not open the door for Deval Patrick? He did have a high profile speaking assignment at the DNC which gave him a National Stage. Keep the faith, people.

8. I understand the concern, but this is bigger than a single Senate seat

Obama needs someone he can count on and John Kerry has earned a chance at this position (he is not getting younger). I also worry about the Senate seat, but there is more to look at than just the seat.

29. There are also men and women who have worked at the State Dept for decades

57. I'm surprised so many Dems are still so unaware of all the heavy lifting Kerry did for State Dept

and the WH the last 4 years.

Obama and Clinton relied heavily on Kerry this entire time, and it's amazing to me that so many who believe they are so on top of the news let the last 4 years of Kerry's quiet diplomatic leadership slip right past them.

102. None of those things were "given" to him

He was not the media or party candidate when he ran his races for lt Governor or the first Senate run. (The same is true for the Presidential nomination) In all those races, he won by winning over voters one by one - convincing them that he was the best choice.

As to marrying a millionaire, he himself is a millionaire, while Teresa is likely a billionaire. It is great - for both of these two brilliant, purposeful people - that they found each other and married.

However, the SOS job is not a "gift" or a "reward". The reason he was considered is that there is no one - in either party - with the length of experience in foreign policy, vision and diplomatic temperament that he has. I note that you did not speak of "reward" when others spoke of Rice. It is hard to argue that she had the diplomatic temperament or the ability to work the Senate she did.

12. Good choice. As a MA resident, I would hope everybody stop the handwringing now. we dont need it.

18. I agree!

People need to stop with the fear and the wimpering the whining right now. I mean, good God, people: MA is one of the more reliable Dem. states. This is totally winnable. Brown is vulnerable, and he lost a lot of his "likability" points in the last election. As Mass said, Brown wins only if we let him.
People need to redirect the energy that they're wasting on fear and start WORKING RIGHT NOW to replace Sen. Kerry with a worthy Democratic senator. Luckily , the MA bench is deep. I can think of at least 3 good candidates. Now go out and support the nominee to the hilt.

61. True, but then he lost after people had a chance to see him

in action for two years.

I think we should be as cautious as we are with any open race. Nothing is certain in politics and we'll definitely need a good candidate. But Brown has a record now. He can't pull the moderate schtick like he could in 2010.

35. Hope they aren't too mad

over this.

A respected DUer from MA gave an excellent post of how diva-like that state can be. Hope Uncle Ted is smiling somewhere. Hope they give him the respect they did Kennedy. Senator Kerry seemed better than people gave him credit for.

63. I'm hoping 2014 will show them that redrawn congressional lines aren't

66. Yeah!!!!!!! And, lets get this straight right now, Kerry was always the first choice.

John Kerry was the obvious, and expected choice right after President Obama won reelection. It wasn't until McCain and his two or three other amegos interfered with lies and accusations against Susan Rice, that her name was floated BY THE PRESS, as being the front running. The President never nominated her, and his support was what any decent person would offer to someone under attack with accusations of lying, when they were innocent. Democrats had issues with Rice too.

105. Or, you might not understand domestic policy. nt

93. Let us not forget: Susan Rice herself put the kibosh on her nom...

Not because of anything to do with Benghazi but because she has a few million invested in the Keystone Pipeline oil company.

And if McCain and his angry white man ilk are crowing over Kerry's nom, then why do we care about their pathetic gloating? They're losers, and we all know they're losers. ITMT, they're gonna insure Kerry's confirmation goes smoothly, and we'll have an awesome Secy of State to follow up another awesome one.

And I have every confidence MA will send us a good, progressive Dem Senator in Kerry's place. So everybody wins!

98. Whatever.

99. Humble question

If we are not picking Kerry because we are scared of Scott Brown, isn't that another way of caving? After all, Susna Rice may have been capable, but she was a WAR HAWK, and some people might want to think about the fact that the GOP may have wanted to make sure that Obama picked a War hawk, rather than Kerry?

Yes, Scott Brown is a worry, though a lot more damage is done by people who are letting Brown, aka the guy that Liz Warren just beat, out to be some superman. Yes, we need to win that seat, though to be honest, our main focus needs to be the House, as they are the ones doing a lot of damage, doing the bidding of the tea Party. I am not denying the risks, but frankly, if we cannot pick a cabinet member, even ones that are qualified, based on what the GOP might do, we might as well give them a pass to yank our chain.

All the same, I do think while Kerry is well qualified to be SoS, there are enough people to fill that bill. I would go for a long shot..

Arianna Huffington.

Yes, I get annoyed at her for her centrists attacks in the supposedly liberal HUffpo, but I will admit, she can be a good diplomat.